Paper aligner for recording machines



April 17, 195] H. M. FLEMING 2,549,187

PAPER ALIGNER FOR RECORDING MACHINES Filed NOV. 2, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet l Ihwentm' C(ttornegJ April 17, 1951 H. M. FLEMING 2,549,187

PAPER ALIGNER FOR RECORDING MACHINES Filed Nov. 2, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 3nvemtor,

' Howard/076mm; iwmmmw mm,

Gttorneg- Patented Apr. 17, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE PAPER ALIGN'ER FOR RECORDING MACHINES Application November 2, 1948, Serial No. 57,989

8 Claims. (Cl. 197-127) The invention relates to paper aligners for recording machines, such for instance as a Monroe listing adding machine having a shiftable carriage provided with a platen and a pivotal front feed paper guide having an upper straight edge and pressure rolls engaging the platen to feed a paper work sheet during rotation of the platen. According to this invention there is provided a manipulable means for moving the paper guide to open throat and closed throat positions, as well as to an incomplete closed throat position, prior to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position, to loosely frictionally grip said sheet between said rolls and the platen to permit manual adjustment of the work sheet with respect to said straight edge to align the last printed entry on said sheet. The manipulable means is also arranged to operate means for rotating the platen subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position to feed the work sheet reversely from its direction of insertion but in normal line feeding direction for entry of a new item is given linear relation to said last entry. Another ob- I 'ject is to provide a second manipulable means for adjusting the effective stroke of the pawl of a ratchet and pawl means for rotating the platen one line or alternatively two line feeding and consequent spacing of the printing lines of the work sheet. Other objects and advantages will appear hereinafter or will be obvious.

The invention consists in the novel construction and combinations of parts as hereinafter set forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a plan view of a listing adding machine having the invention applied thereto.

Figure 2 is a side view of the invention as applied, the carriage end frame being shown as partly broken away, the paper guide being shown in completely closed throat position, and the second manipulable means being shown in position as adjusted to shorten the effective stroke of the pawl for one line feeding of the work sheet.

Figure 3 is a section on the line 3--.-3, Figure 1, the carriage end frame being shown as partly broken away, the paper guide being shown in open throat position.

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 2, with parts omitted, showing the pawl of the ratchet and pawl means in the position assumed with the paper guide in the open throat position of 2 fective stroke of the pawl for two line feeding of the work sheet.

The invention is shown as applied to a Monroe listing adding machine, such for instance as disclosed in the Crosman Patent No. 1,946,572, dated February 13, 1934, modified in accord with the disclosure of the Crosman Patent No. 2,323,205 dated June 29, 1943, so far as the general type of machine and of the carriage are concerned.

In the drawings, the numeral l designates a shiftable carriage having mounted thereon a rotatable platen 2, and a front feed paper guide 3 pivoted at its lower end at 4 to the carriage end frames 5 and tending to fall by gravity from normal or closed throat position (Fig. 2) to open throat position (Fig. 3), said paper guide having pressure rolls 6 which when in closed throat position (Fig. 2) engage the platen to cause a paper work sheet I to be fed during rotation of the platen and having an upper straight edge 8, located when in closed throat position in horizontal alignment with the longitudinal axis of the platen.

Manipulable means are provided for moving said paper guide to open throat and to closed throat position in such a manner that prior to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position, the paper guide is moved to incomplete closed throat position to loosely frictionally grip the work sheet 1 between said rolls and the platen in such a manner as to permit manual adjust ment of said sheet with respect to said straight edge to align the last printed entry on the work sheet. The manipulable means is arranged to operate a ratchet and pawl means for rotating the platen, subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position, to feed the work sheet reversely from the direction of insertion for entry of a new item in given linear relation to said last entry.

The manipulable means comprises two identical operating levers 9 secured to the ends of rock shaft IQ journaled in the carriage end frames 5. Levers 9 are connected together at their free ends by a handle bar 9' to form a bail for ready operation by the user of the machine. Each lever 9 is provided with an aperture 9", bounded in part by an arcuate edge I! concentric with its fulcrum and by upper and lower arcuate seats l2 forming an extension or continuation of the edge H. The edge II and seats [2 of each lever are engaged by a roller l 3 carried upon the upper end of an arm l4 extending upwardly from and fast to each end of arock shaft 4. Accordingly,

manual adjustment of said sheet with respect to; said straight edge to align the last printed entry on said sheet, means operable by said manipulable means for rotating the platen subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position to feed the work sheet for entry of a new item in given linear relation to said last entry, and means for temporarily retaining the paper guide in open throat and in complete closed throat position.

4. In a listing adding machine having a shiftable carriage having a platen and a pivotal front-feed paper guide provided with an upper straight edge and pressure rolls engaging the platen to cause feeding of a Work sheet thereover during rotation of the platen, said paper guide tending to drop by gravity to open throat position; manipulable means for moving said paper guide to open throat and to closed throat position comprising a lever having an aperture bounded in part by an edge concentric with its fulcrum and by upper and lower seats, said paper guide having an upper extension bearing a roller, the lower of said seats being engaged by said rol er when said paper guide is in open throat position, the upper of said seats being so disposed as to cause movement of the paper guide to incomplete closed throat position prior to movement of the paper guide to complete closed throat position to loosely frictionally grip said sheet between said rolls and the platen to permit manual adjustment of the work sheet with respect to said straight edge to align the last printed entry on said sheet, said lower and upper seats serving to temporarily retain the paper guide in open throat and in incomplete closed throat position, the upper of said seats having a cam edge intersecting said concentric edge to move the paper guide to complete closed throat position, and ratchet and pawl means operab e by said manipulable means for rotating the platen subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position to feed the work sheet for entry of a new item in given linear relation to said last entry, said roller travelling along said concentric edge during said subsequent rotation of the platen.

5. In a listing adding machine having a shiftab e carriage having a platen and a pivotal front-feed paper guide provided with an upper straight edge and pressure rolls engaging the platen to cause feeding of a work sheet thereover during rotation of the platen, said paper guide tending to drop by gravity to open throat position; manipulable means for moving said paper guide to open throat and to closed throat position comprising a lever having an aperture bounded in part by an edge concentric with its fulcrum and by upper and lower seats, said paper guide having an upper extension bearing a roller, the lower of said seats being engaged by said roller when said paper guide is in open throat position, the upper of said seats being so disposed as to cause movement of the paper guide to incomplete closed throat position prior to movement of the paper guide to complete closed throat position to loosely frictionally grip said sheet between said rolls and the platen to permit manual adjustment of the work sheet with respect to said straight edge to align the last printed entry on said sheet, said lower and upper seats serving to temporarily retain the paper guide in open throat and in incomplete closed throat position, the upper of said seats having a cam edge intersecting said concentric edge to 6 move the paper guide to complete closedthroat position, and ratchet and pawl means operable by said manipulable means for rotating the platen subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position to feed the work sheet for entry of a new item thereon, said roller travelling along said concentric edge during said subsequent rotation of the platen, and a second manipulable means for adjusting the elfective stroke of the pawl of said ratchet and pawl means prior tomanipulation of said first named means for one line or alternatively two line feedign of the work sheet, comprising a lever fulclosed throat position, and to incomplete closed I throat position prior to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position, to loosely frictionally grip the work sheet between said rolls and the platen to permit manual adjustment of the work sheet with respect to said straight edge to align the last printed entry on said sheet, and means operable by said manipulable means for rotating the platen subsequently to moving the paper guide to complete closed throat position to feed the work sheet for entry of a new item in given linear relation to said last entry, said latter means being inoperable to rotate the platen during movement of said paper guide from open throat to incomplete closed throat position.

7. In a listing adding machine having a shiftable carriage provided with a platen and a pivoted front feed paper guide having pressure rolls engaging the platen when said guide is in normal or closed throat position to cause feeding of a paper work sheet during rotation of the platen; means comprising an operating lever for retaining the paper guide in normal closed throat position, for moving it to and retaining it in open throat position, for moving it to and retaining it in incomp ete closed throat position, and for returning it to normal position; and means operable by said lever for subsequently rotating the platen, said latter means comprising a shaft actuated by said lever, ratchet and pawl means, and a crank arm fast on said shaft and having a pivotal connection with the pawl of said ratchet and pawl means.

8. In a listing adding machine having a shiftable carriage provided with a platen and a pivoted front feed paper guide having an upper straight edge and pressure rolls engaging the platen when said paper guide is in normal closed throat position to cause feeding of a paper work sheet during rotation of the platen; means comprising an operating lever for retaining the guide in normal position, for moving it to and retaining it in open throat position, for moving it to and retaining it in incomplete closed throat position, and for restoring it to normal position; means operated by said lever for subsequently rotating the platen, said latter means comprising ratchet and pawl means, a shaft operated by said lever, and a crank arm fast on said shaft, and pivotally connected to said pawl; and mamum s1:

' mg of s'alld'i sheet; said la'tter means: comprising a lvevjournalld up'on the' platen: i shaft and having-iamupper extensionengaging said pawl tom: it from engagement with" its ratchet dun-'- irigw-porti'on of its efiec'tive stroke;

HOWARD-M. FLEMING;

8* REFERENCES CJTlEl') The foll'o'wing references are of record in- 116 file of this'bate'nt:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,743,655 Cooper" --Jan; 14,1930 2,375,976 Crosmanw -May 15, 1945 

